the artifices of thofe, who, by fpecious oratory and falfe reasoning, were courting popularity, and deluding the inhabitants of this country into a refignation of their rights. It was not, faid they, for a man of his abstracted genius, a philofopher, a moralist, and a poet, to concern himfelf in the contentions between a parent-ftate and its offspring. The mufes, gentle creatures! are of no party: they

in a ring

Ay round about Jove's altar fing.'

IL PENSEROSO,

And, in conformity to this character, it behoved him to be a filent fpectator of all that was paffing, and leave the agitation of political queftions to men, whofe malevolence comprehended in it all the qua-, lifications neceffary in the course of fuch a warfare*.

But Johnson was of another mind: he was confcious of his own abilities, and felt within himfelf fuch powers of reafoning, fuch a knowledge of the principles of civil policy, as qualified him for a contest, not with American planters, or colony agents, but with tumid orators, factious lawyers, and interested felfish merchants. And, in this exercife of his pen,

In like manner did they before refent the publication by Mr. Hogarth of a print called The Times,' the intent whereof was to unite the people, and facilitate the negociations for peace. The patriots in oppofition to Sir Robert Walpole had, in their time, viz, immediately after the publication of the Rake's Progress, endeavoured to engage Mr. Hogarth to defign a series of prints, to be intitled The Statefman's Progrefs,' but he, fcorning to profitute his art to the purposes of faction, rejected their offer.

he was not lefs fincere than formidable. Admitting him to be a tory, he was a friend to both the ecclefiaftical and civil establishment of his country; and he thought it his duty, as a good fubject, when the legiflative authority was denied, to refute the arguments of fuch as refifted it.

It has been infinuated, that in his vindication of the measures of government, as contained in the feveral pamphlets before cited, Johnfon had an eye rather to the obligation which his penfion implied, than to the queftions in debate. This, if it could be proved, might be an objection to his integrity, but fets him but on a level with his opponents, whofe apparent and known motive to oppofition and clamour was the defire of popularity, as a means, whereby the ambitious among them hoped to attain power, and the indigent to acquire places or emoluments; and who will fay, that an itch for vulgar applaufe is not as corrupt a motive to an action as any that can be imputed to one in Johnfon's fituation? But with matters of opinion, motives have nothing to do: arguments alone are the weapons of controverfy. With respect to the first pamphlet, The Falfe Alarm,' the question there agitated was, whether the expulfion of a member of one of the houfes of parliament, by a majority of votes, imported a defign on the liberties of the people; and impartial pofterity, which must decide upon it, will look no farther than to the reasoning of each party.

Of those who endeavour at this time to excite fufpicions of this nature, it may be truly faid, that they understand neither the conftitution, nor the politics of this country; nor do they know, that the former

is now fo amended by the conceffions which, fince the restoration, have been made by the crown to the people, that lefs is to be feared from princes, or their minifters, who are ever refponfible for their conduct, than from artful and defigning men, stimulated by ambition, or provoked by disappointment, and furnished with the fafcinating powers of popular eloquence.

I forbear to animadvert on the two next fucceeding pamphlets, Falkland's iflands,' and The Patriot;' but fhall obferve, that the last of the four, Taxation

no Tyranny,' has not only never received an answer, but the converse of the propofition has never yet been fo proved, by arguments founded on legal principles, as to make a vindication of Johnson's reasoning neceffary, for any other purpose, than that of preventing the ignorant from being mifled. The principle affumed by Johnson, that the fupreme power of every community has the right of requiring from all its fubjects fuch contributions as are neceffary to the public fafety, or public profperity,' is as felf-evident, as that obedience is due from children to parents, and is not refuted by the affertion, that the confent of those who are required thus to contribute, is neceffary, for, were it fo, what becomes of the right? Neither is the position, that taxation and representation are correlative, to be admitted as a principle of the English conftitution, feeing it does not, nor ever did, exift as a part of it; and that the far greater number of the fubjects of England, men who are not freeholders to a certain amount, copyholders, who are a third of the landholders in this kingdom, and all women, are unrepresented in parliament, and bound by laws enacted by the reprefentatives of others, but

in

în no sense of themselves. In cities, and boroughs, the representation is often of the meaneft of the people; in London, for inftance, where a mechanic, if he be a liveryman, has a vote, and a freeholder, wanting that qualification, though affeffed ever so high to the land-tax, has none.

This affertion might poffibly have place in a state about to be founded, as none ever was or is likely to be, on folemn agreement, or that political fiction called an original contract; but, the conftitution of a state already formed, is to be taken as we find it. Nor has any one of those who deny the right of a mothercountry to tax its colonies, attempted to prove an exemption, by any other arguments than are to be found in Mr. Locke's Effay on Government, a difcourse of general import, and which applies to no exifting constitution on earth *.

The above tracts, as they contain no evidence of a personal attachment of the author to those who, at the respective times of their appearance, had the direction of the public councils, are a refutation of all those flanders which they drew on him; and, as

I once had a conversation on this fubject with a nobleman, who afterwards attained to the height of power in the administration, and was against the prosecution of the American war; the fame who was once heard to utter this ftabbing truth, that the fun of Great Britain's glory was then fet; who went no farther than to doubt of the right above spoken of; and, for this doubt he had no better a reason to urge, than that Cromwell, in his levies on the Americans for the common fervice, contented himself with a bare requifition of fuch supplies as they, in their discretion, should judge proportionate to their circumstances and abilities. The fame offer had been made by Mr. Grenville to the American agents here; but, being kept back from their conftituents, it failed of its effect.

the fubjects of them, feverally, are queftions of the greatest national importance, fufficiently diftinguish him from those hireling fcribblers, who, in the contefts of factions, are retained on the fide of either party, and whom the vulgar ftyle political writers. In like manner did Addifon and Hoadly employ their talents they were both friends of government, and wrote in defence of the public meafures, and not only efcaped obloquy, but were and ftill are celebrated as lovers of their country.

I have hitherto forborne to fpeak, otherwife than in general terms, of Johnfon's political principles; but, the task of reviewing the tracts above cited, has revived in my memory many of his fentiments, which, at different times, he communicated to me, on the fubjects of government, the English conftitution, and the motives to party oppofition. That he was a tory, he not only never hefitated to confefs, but, by his frequent invectives against the whigs, was forward to proclaim yet, was he not fo befotted in his notions, as to abett what is called the patriarchal scheme, as delineated by Sir Robert Filmer and other writers on government; nor, with others of a more fober caft, to acquiefce in the opinion that, because fubmiffion to governors is, in general terms, inculcated in the Holy Scriptures, the refiftance of tyranny and oppreffion is, in all cafes, unlawful: he seemed rather to adopt the fentiments of Hooker on the fubject, as explained by Hoadly, and, by confequence, to look on fubmiffion to lawful authority as a moral obligation: he, therefore, condemned the conduct of James the fecond during his fhort reign; and, had he been a fubject of that weak and infatuated monarch, would,